Famous Brazilian football legend Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known by his nickname Pelé, has left a portion of his fortune to his secret daughter, Sandra Regina, who he had long denied was his child.
According to a report by the Daily Mirror, though the late football icon had never accepted that Regina was his child, he listed her alongside six other children in his will.
Pele had previously refused to acknowledge he was Regina’s father, leaving her heartbroken when she died 17 years ago.
However, in a dramatic turn of events, the 82-year-old Brazilian soccer hero requested to meet with Regina’s two sons, Gabriel Arantes do Nascimento and Octavio Felinto Neto. Interestingly, he spoke to them physically for the first time on 28 December 2022, just a day before he died.
Speaking on the visit, Gabriel said, ”I spoke to my aunts, and they said that our grandfather wanted to see us. We were very excited because it was an opportunity we had been longing for.
“Every family has fights and rows, ours is no different, but there are moments when love and union are more important than anything else. We are extremely happy.”
The publication revealed that her share would go to her sons after they fulfilled a request from their dying grandfather.
Sandra, who died of cancer in 2006, was born after Pele had an affair with his cleaner, Anisia Machado, who fought for years to get the Brazilian Football legend to admit being Regina’s father but refused to do so, even after a DNA test proved he was.
In 1996, Sandra was given the right by the court to use Pele’s surname, Nascimento, after she won a five-year legal battle against him.
